He began clapping, as if applauding my father for the act, when it had been my grandfather who had been so cold and hurtful to betray his own son.
The others of the Commission began clapping. Some of them were genuinely applauding my father while others were a little more hesitant in the praise. My father looked at his lap, upset. I tried to glare at Dana, but Dana turned to the rest of the Commission instead.
“Now, we want the children of the Commission to become future leaders, and that means we must weed out the ones who are not worthy. Please keep that in mind.”
Dana stepped off the platform and walked to one side of the room. Mrs. Markus blinked out of her stupor and returned to the microphone, feeling concerned as a parent herself.
“Um…thank you, Mr. Christenson,” she said awkwardly. “Very well, we will get started with the first item…”
I ignored her, as I always did, glancing behind me to see that Clark’s seat was empty.
Suddenly, there were two large hands on my shoulders, causing me to take in a surprised gasp.
“If you don’t mind, Little Lily,” Dana breathed, “I have something I would like to show you.”
Every part of my body screamed not to go with him, but his hands guided me out of my seat and I ended up following as he took my wrist. He glanced at my confused parents.
“There is something I would like to show Little Lily.” Dana smiled at them. “I will bring her back soon.”
That eased my mind a little bit. At least he had told someone that I was supposed to come back.
We walked through the door at the back left corner of the meeting room. The hallway was dark, only half of the lights illuminated. Clark was in the hall, fidgeting and looking at the ground as he paced.
“Clark?”
I was so relieved to see him that I could not stop myself from running forward and hugging him tightly. He stiffened, and then his arms hesitantly went around my back, patting my shoulder.
I pulled away, but before I could ask him anything, Dana spoke.
“Clark has something that he wants to say to you.”
I blinked at Clark, concerned.
Clark took a deep breath.
“Lily, I owe you an apology,” he whispered. He slowly lowered himself to his knees, his head bent low. I stared in horror, not sure what he was doing. “I…I was selfish and left you at Archangel alone last night…because of that…you were assaulted and nearly raped…I accept full responsibility, and understand the pain that must have been inflicted on you.”
He lowered his forehead to the ground, his hands on the floor as he prostrated himself.
“Stop…” I finally managed to breath.
“I have been shown the horror of the events you experienced, but if you think…I need more punishment…I understand.”
“Clark, what the hell are you talking about?” I said weakly. “Please, get up.”
He didn’t.
“Clark! Please!” I snapped. Still, he did not move.
Dana walked up behind me and wrapped his strong fingers around my shoulders again as I started to move to Clark, halting my step.
“I took the liberty of punishing him for you,” Dana breathed in my ear. “However, I would understand if you think he needs more.”
“What the hell did you do to him?”
“Nothing more than what happened to you last night,” he said. He leaned his head on the side of mine. I could feel that he had taken off his glasses. “Oh, Little Lily, you belong to me. I ordered him to protect you, and he failed in his duty. I could not let that go unpunished.”
“I do not belong to you,” I snarled as strongly as I could manage.
Dana chuckled and my entire body tensed at the sound.
“Do you feel the power, Little Lily?” he breathed. I felt my body go weak, part from fear and part from the excitement that tingled along my skin from his voice. “It’s intoxicating, isn’t it? Having so much power over someone…” I felt his lips against the shell of my ear. “One might even say it’s,” his hand slid down my arms and to my hip, pulling me against him, “arousing.”
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Memories of the fantasy at Archangel flooded back, but I still remembered all too well the events following. I had to remain strong.
“Stop,” I growled, trying to worm away.
“Look at him,” Dana whispered. “He is humbled at your feet…completely at your mercy…don’t you have the urge to abuse him? Just a little bit?”
“N-no…” I had no urge to hurt Clark. He could not have stopped what happened the previous night even if he had been there. I should have been more aware. I was not about to punish Clark for my inattention, even with the urging of Dana Christenson.
“Really?” Dana breathed, a dark smile lining his voice. “You don’t want to use this power? You know he can’t do anything to fight back. You are in complete control, now.”
I tried to turn away from Clark, who had not moved, but Dana’s hand on my chin was firm. I closed my eyes, fighting back frightened and frustrated tears. I could not let Dana see me weep. He had already made me cry too often. I refused to give him the satisfaction once again.
“Open your eyes and look at him,” Dana snapped. Reluctantly, I opened my eyes when his strong fingers began to dig further into my jaw. “That’s it…see the power you have, Little Lily? You could kick him right now and he would do nothing to fight you. Don’t you want to see how far you can push him until he starts begging for mercy?”
“No.”
“You want to see how it feels to dominate someone.”
“No…”
“You want to feel someone’s life,” his arms wrapped around me, though one hand still held my jaw, “in your hands…you want to hear their cries…see their tears…”
“No…I-I don’t…”
My head was spinning. I wanted to turn back the hands of time. Back to that first day in Central when I met Becca, how happy I was to have a new friend and when the new school was my biggest concern. Now, I was fighting to keep my sense of self and not be swept up in Dana’s frightening storm. I could not allow myself to succumb to the spell that so many in the Commission had fallen under.
“You want to feel that power…I know you do…” Dana cooed, pulling me tighter to him. “I know you must have some ideas of what you want to do with him.”
“Please…p-please…let me go…” I whimpered, my entire body trembling.
“Now, now…don’t be afraid of it, Little Lily.” Dana grinned wickedly. “Succumb to it.”
“Please…don’t make me do this,” I pled. I needed to get out. I needed to get out of the basement. I needed fresh air…I felt sick…
“Lily…” Clark’s voice made me pause. “…I understand that what I did was unforgivable.”
“Clark! Please, stop!” I cried weakly.
“I will accept my punishment…”
“Stop it! Please! Stop it!”
“Listen to him, Little Lily…he’s willing…”
“I won’t do it!” I nearly screamed. I hoped others in the Commission would hear me and come to investigate.
“You will,” Dana breathed before kissing my temple, his lips grazing my skin as he said, “I know you will…”
My body went limp, frightened and weak. He held me upright.
“I…I am n-not your…goddamn toy…” The statement was not at all threatening. I was so close to the verge of crying that my throat was constricted, making it difficult to breathe. “I won’t…I won’t let you do this to me.”
“Do what to you?”
“I…I am not like the others…i-in the Commission…”
Dana chuckled.
“Of course you’re not, Little Lily,” he whispered. “Why do you think I like you so much?”
“I…I won’t be your puppet…” I near-sobbed, falling forward again as he held me close, his hand still on my jaw and his arm firm around my middle.
“But I told y
ou,” Dana said, “you are the one in control now. Go ahead…use your power…make him pay.”
“Lily, please, you can punish me…”
“Stop it!”
My body went limp, and I melted from Dana’s grip, falling to the floor heavily, shivering violently. I sobbed, my body jerking, but I refused to let my tears flow, still feeling Dana’s eyes on me.
I dragged my body across the floor to the wall, curling against it, my eyes unable to focus.
I looked at Clark, who was still on all fours, but he had looked up when I had fallen, his eyes apologetic. I stared at him, frightened, not sure if the terror was over. I could not catch my breath, gulping in air. The tears started blurring my vision, but I blinked them away.
I could not cry.
Clark started to crawl forward, but Dana’s foot was immediately in front of the younger man’s face, effectively stopping his advance.
We both looked up at the leader of the Commission. I saw him staring down at me with his unnatural eyes. My breath caught in my throat, choking me.
He lowered his foot and took a step toward me before crouching and placing a hand against my face. I flinched away from the touch as if it burned.
“Ah…I didn’t get any tears from you tonight…” Dana held my eyes in his stare as I felt myself slip into the worst panic I had ever felt in my life. “Good, that means we’re making progress.”
He stood, pulling out his dark glasses as he turned on his heel and walked out of the hall.
Clark and I watched him leave silently. When the door had closed behind him, we remained still for three agonizing seconds. I finally collapsed to my side, sobbing, the terror rocketing through my body with shocking intensity.
Clark’s hand was on my shoulder, startling me. I looked up and saw him sitting by my head.
I threw my arms around him, holding him tight as his arms wound around me as well.
“I’m sorry!” I gasped. “I’m so sorry!”
“Shh…don’t be sorry…” I could hear the tears in his trembling voice. I held him tighter, burying my head in his shoulder. “I’m sorry…I know I pushed you…I just wanted him to stop.”
“What does he want?” I hiccupped. Clark’s arms tightened around me.
“I don’t know.”
* *** *
Clark and I made it back to the meeting in time for the last five minutes. We both got a lot of strange looks from the others in the Commission upon our return. Some of the Commish Kids were looking at us in a horrible way, judging us for any lewd acts we might have been engaging in.
I sat at my table, forcing myself to smile at my parents as though nothing was wrong. I avoided looking at Dana at all costs, who was positioned at the side of the room watching everything with hawk-like intensity.
“To wrap up the meeting, we would like to report that Gregory Altereye and his men, who, you will remember, have now been in space for two and a half years, have sent us tentative reports of finding other planets that could possibly sustain human life.”
Everyone in the Commission of the People gasped in awe and excitement. I would have been excited as well if my brain wasn’t so numbed from over-stimulation.
“As we get more detailed information, we will let you know what we find,” Mrs. Markus smiled. “And, with that…I think we’re finished for the evening.”
She closed the meeting and everyone gathered their belongings to leave. However, as happened after all Commission meetings, friends gathered in groups and socialized, talking about work or something that they were planning to do over the course of the week. I turned to Clark, who motioned me closer.
“Are you alright?” he whispered. I nodded, unsure what else to do.
“What is he doing right now?” I hissed, not daring to look over my shoulder in Dana’s direction.
Clark’s eyes flicked up.
“He’s in the same group as your parents,” he answered. I groaned and rolled my eyes. He placed a hand on my shoulder again and asked me once more if I was alright.
“I guess so,” I admitted. I looked at him sincerely. “I am really sorry about what happened.”
“Don’t be,” he assured, shaking his head. “I pushed you, I just…” He looked away, embarrassed. “I just didn’t want him to keep tormenting you like that…I wasn’t sure when it was going to stop.” He dropped his voice even further. “You know, if you had just done something, it would have ended sooner.”
“No,” I said strongly. “I could never live with myself if I hurt someone just because I was pressured into it. I would have felt horrible.”
Clark gave my shoulder a squeeze.
“You’re a much stronger person than I am, Lily.”
“You would have done the same for me, right?” I looked at him worriedly. He smiled and took a deep breath.
“I hope I would have your strength at that time,” he admitted honestly. “Of course, I would never want to harm you, but…I don’t know how much of Dana doing that I could handle.”
I nodded, satisfied with the answer. I understood how influential Dana could be, so I did not fault Clark for not knowing if he would be able to stop himself from being pressured into doing something. I glanced around to see if anyone was listening.
“Is he still talking with my parents?” I breathed. He looked up discreetly once again and nodded. “Listen, we don’t have to put up with this. We can find a way to stop it.”
“Lily, that’s dangerous talk. That’s treason,” he hissed, also glancing around worriedly.
“I know, so let’s not discuss it here. How do I get in contact with you?”
Clark glanced up at Dana and his eyes hardened. My heart leapt in my chest, thrilled that I could see Clark become another ally in the fight against the Commission of the People and Dana. I knew that Mykail and I would need help. Clark, with the inside knowledge gained from the years he had been in the Commission, would know more about Dana’s schedule and how to get close to him than anyone else.
“I know where you live,” Clark hissed. “I will come and see you tomorrow.”
“Okay.”
“Now, are you sure you’re alright?” he pressed once final time.
“I’ll see how I feel tomorrow. It’s a little hard to think right now.”
“Clark?” a voice called from across the room. We both saw his mother motioning for him. He sighed and turned to me, squeezing my shoulder one more time.
“Tomorrow,” he promised. He began walking toward his mother. I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself, and then turned toward the group my parents, and Dana, were in.
“So, would you recommend her for the Commission?” Dana pressed. I stood as far away from Dana as I could, feeling my heartbeat race again when I got too close. I was surprised at my ability to bear up to the emotional and mental abuse he was putting me through. At least as far as I knew, my parents didn’t suspect him of abusing me. I was beginning to understand how Clark’s mother could not know what Dana was doing to her son. When we had to, we were able to bear up to anything thrown at us. When we had no choice, we adapted.
“Well, she is a very intelligent woman, and she has been a great help to me,” my father said nervously. I was happy to see that he was slow in recommending another person to be inducted into the Commission of the People. That meant that he had not been put under Dana’s spell yet, and still found the practices in the Commission horrific.
“Oh, Karen. I was just telling Samantha here about your wonderful imagination for charity events,” a woman said excitedly, walking up to my mother. She turned to Dana. “Oh, please forgive me, Mr. Christenson.”
“No trouble,” he nodded, allowing my mother to leave the conversation to discuss something else with another group. I watched my mother be pulled away, worried that someone was going to distract other members of the group and leave me alone with Dana once again. He turned to my father and I looked at my feet.
“Well, we already know that,” Dana laughed coldly
, as if scolding my father for saying something foolish. “I was wondering what you thought about her ability to be a part of this Commission in the broader sense. She knows much about border control, being from so far north, and we have been having difficulties along that northern border with the civil war in Canada…”
“Well, I am not sure,” my father said. “Mrs. Davis might not be able to handle certain aspects of the Commission…”
I blinked, surprised. Mrs. Davis? As in Becca’s mother?
Dana looked down at his hands, fiddling with the watch.
“I see…” he said. “Well, that is a shame…poor woman. Her husband is such a well-known philanderer that she must be desperate for some sense of belonging.”
My father started a bit, as did I. I was, once again, unsure if Dana was telling the truth or if he was trying to get under our skins somehow by lying. Then again, Dana had some truths that got under my skin.
“I was not aware…”
“Oh, yes, the poor dear,” Dana said, though the words passed like acid on his lips. I shivered as I thought about the different feelings his voice gave me. “She really should have someone to take care of her. She works so hard at what she does, it seems wrong to have her do all the work in her private life as well…”
There was something about that sentence that made my hair stand on end.
“Dana,” Sean said, walking to Dana’s side, leaning in and whispering something in his boss’ ear. Dana listened intently as we watched, wondering what was happening.
“Very well,” Dana nodded. He turned to the rest of us. “If you will please excuse me.”
Without another glance, he swept out of the room by the door near the back of the stage, Sean close behind. I relaxed, not realizing how tense I had been for such a prolonged period of time. My father offered me a small smile, which I forced myself to return.
“Are you alright?” he asked. “You look a little pale.”
“I’m fine,” I assured before I could stop myself. “Just tired.”
“Yes, I agree. It is late,” he said. “Let’s go home.”
Inside, Pt. 1 Page 22